Sharp and Sony tie the knot on LCD HDTV production

The WSJ is reporting that, slightly close to what was rumored, market leaders Sharp and Sony are getting hitched on a joint LCD HDTV panel production business -- not unlike how LG and Philips have LG Display (formerly LG.Philips LCD). While the venture has yet to be named (we'll call it Sharp.Sony for now, why not?), the $3.5 billion plant is under construction right now in Sakai, and is due to open its doors in March 2010 where it will produce as many as 72,000 HDTVs per month. Sharp is slated to own two-thirds of the business with Sony owning the remaining third. [Warning: subscription req'd for read link]